Page:The principal navigations, voyages, traffiques and discoveries of the English nation 16.djvu/297

 Flanders, France, Spaine, Italie, and so returned vnto Peloponesus and Greece, discouering the most part of the coast of Europe.

Strabo, alleaging Artistonicus the Grammarian, sheweth that after the destruction of Troy Menelaus the king came out of the straights of the Leuant seas into the sea Atlanticke and coasted Africa and Guinea, and doubled the Cape of Bona Esperança, and so in time arriued in India. Of which voyage of his there may be many more particulars gathered out of the histories. This Mediterrane sea was also sometimes called The Adriaticke, The Ægæan, and the Herculean sea, with other names, according to the lands, coasts and Islands which it passeth by, running into the great sea Atlanticke, along the coast of Africa.

In the yeere 1300. after the flood Solomon caused a nauie to be prepared on the Red sea, at an hauen called Ezeon Geber, to saile to the East India, where by opinion stande the Islands called Tharsis and Ophir. This nauie was three yeeres on this voyage, and then returned and brought with them gold, siluer, cypres &c. Whereby it seemeth that those places, and Islands were those, which now be called the Luçones, Lequeos, and Chinaes. For we know few other parts from whence some of those things are brought, or wherein nauigation was so long since vsed.

It is left vs also in histories,[C] that a king of Egypt called Neco, desiring greatly to ioyne the Red sea with the riuer Nilus, commanded the Phœnicians to saile from the straight of Mecca to the farther ende of the Mediterrane sea, to see if it did make any turne backe againe vnto Egypt. Which commandement they obeied, sailing towards the south all along the coast and countrey of Melinde, Quiloa, Sofala, till they came to the Cape of Bona Esperança, finding the sea continually on the left hand: But when they had doubled the Cape, and found the coast continually on the right hand, they marueiled much at it. Notwithstanding they continued their course forward toward the north al along the coast of Guiney and the Mediterrane sea, till they came backe againe into Egypt, whence they first went out. In which discouerie they remained two yeeres. And these are thought to be the first, that compassed by sea all the coast of Afrike, and sailed round about it.